Multiple communications systems have become ubiquitous. It is not uncommon for telecommunication service subscribers, typically individuals, to have a telephone system that includes more than one telephone terminal (e.g., both one or more wireline telephones and one or more wireless telephones). Subscribers' wireline telephones may or may not be co-located in the same building and the wireless telephones are, by design, highly mobile. This situation has resulted in a need for subscribers to maintain and distribute multiple telephone numbers that may be used to establish communication.
When a caller tries to reach a subscriber, the caller must dial the subscriber's first telephone number and wait to see if anyone answers the call. If the call goes unanswered, the caller must try the next number and again wait for an answer. This process must be repeated until one of the calls is answered or the caller has tried all of the subscriber's numbers without success. This situation can be frustrating for a caller because multiple telephone calls may have to be tried before successfully reaching the subscriber. Similarly, subscribers can be frustrated because the end result may be a missed call. Multiple line ring services have been offered to solve this problem for subscribers having multiple telephone numbers.
In a multiple line ring service, when a call is made to a subscriber's primary telephone number (typically a wireline), the service provides a ringing tone on the primary line and on designated secondary lines. As known in the art, such multiple line ring services may be extended to ring many different lines, wired or wireless, and to ring the lines at the same time (which may be referred to as a “simultaneous ring service”) or to ring the lines in succession (which may be referred to as a “sequential ring service”). In some such services, the call is automatically connected or completed with the first line that answers. In other such services, when any line answers, the user at that line is requested to indicate acceptance of the call (e.g., by dialing “1”). The call will only be completed if the indication is provided, and the other lines may continue to ring pending such response from the user.